After a tough week for English sides competing in Europe, attention has quickly turned to domestic action with an exciting weekend of Premier League football on the horizon.
Managers across the top-flight will be addressing the media throughout the day, so stay up-to-date here with Daily Mail Sport for the latest talking points.
Howe defends Gordon over sickness
Eddie Howe has hit back at Alan Shearer and Roy Keane after they questioned Anthony Gordon for not feeling well enough to start versus Barcelona on Tuesday.
The Newcastle and England star was expected to lead the line for the Champions League last-16 first leg but was named on the bench after reporting illness.
Shearer, speaking on Prime Video before the game, said: ‘Maybe I’m old school, but if you’re fit enough to train in the morning, and I know he doesn’t feel well, but this is Barcelona at Newcastle for a place in the quarter-finals of the Champions League. It would take something extraordinary to keep myself out of this game tonight.’
Roy Keane then weighed in on The Overlap, when he said: ‘How can you be ill and come on for half an hour? It’s bizarre, isn’t it?’
Host Gary Neville defended Gordon, but Keane countered: ‘Oh Gary, because you did an interview with him last year and you thought he was a really nice lad! How can you be ill, but come on for half an hour?
‘You hear managers every week say, “He’s not fit enough to start, but he’ll be good enough for the bench”. Something might happen after five minutes. I don’t get it. If he’s that important, start him and take him off after half an hour.’
Eddie Howe has defended Anthony Gordon after criticism by Roy Keane and Alan Shearer
Wayne Rooney was on punditry duty with Shearer, and he said: ‘Eddie Howe said before the game that he probably has 20 or 30 minutes in him. That’s telling you the sports scientists and the doctors are (suggesting he can play). If you’re ill, you’re ill.
‘You shouldn’t be there. He walked past us before the game and wouldn’t shake our hands. He said he didn’t want us to catch anything, but then he’s going into the dressing room with his team-mates.’
Howe felt moved to address the criticism when he met the media on Friday ahead of Saturday’s trip to Chelsea.
‘I do have to clear something up with Anthony Gordon,’ he began. ‘He was absolutely willing to play in the game against Barcelona. I know there’s a lot of comments. It was my decision not to start him based on the fact that he’d been ill that morning and hadn’t attended the training session. So he was prepared to play, but in consultation with the medical team, we didn’t think he was fit to play.’
Howe added: ‘My perception is that he does face a lot of scrutiny, but I think that comes with being a top player. As soon as you play for England, you go to a different level in terms of scrutiny and expectation. I think Ant has done that well and he’s single-minded enough to blank out a lot of the noise. It’s one of his strengths.
‘I’d categorise him as a winner. He wants to win everything, he’s a real competitor. He’s got that streak to him that I think all top players need where he’s very single-minded, very focused on his development and his game. I can only speak really glowingly of him this year. He’s probably in the best moment he’s been this season.’
Gordon came on during the final half hour of the 1-1 draw against Barcelona, and afterwards Howe said: ‘We trained this morning and Anthony didn’t make it. So that’s a pretty good sign that he’s not in the best physical condition. The doctors and everyone did a great job to get him at the start line for us, albeit for a short period of time. I thought he made a good contribution when he came on.’
CRAIG HOPE
